Tag: Rock

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Music

The wild world of METZ

Graphic by Zeze Le Lin

The band talks Steve Albini and personal change

Since their inception, METZ have displayed a penchant for balancing noisy, no-holds-barred rock, with downright catchy songwriting. But on their latest project, Strange Peace, the Toronto imports decided to hone a new artistic sting, embracing a more artistic edge and exploratory tendencies.

Enlisting producer Steve Albini, the band stretched the contours of its sound to even crazier, more abrasive domains, with tracks echoing hard-edged post-punk and artsy noise-rock. We spoke with METZ’s singer and guitarist Alex Edkins ahead of the band’s Montreal show last month about their collaboration with Albini and the band’s artistic process.

Those who foam at the mouth for METZ’s textural guitars and fuzz-laden production quality won’t have a hard time digesting Strange Peace. Sonically, the album depends heavily on the wall-of-sound technique Phil Spector innovated in the 60s; a fully-fledged example of the noise-rock band taking on more challenging sounds. The piercing auditory arrangements are still there, but METZ has decided to sprinkle in some fancy studio embellishments here and there. Nuanced synthesizer lines quietly occupy the background in some tracks.

Among the most transformative changes METZ underwent between Strange Peace and its sophomore record, 2016’s II, is relocating to a new base of operation. This time around, the band hired noted engineering wizard and hardcore visionary Albini to record at his Electrical Audio recording studio in Chicago.

“Albini was for sure a great fit. It was a really fast process for us too,” Edkins said. “We recorded the whole thing in four days, and we were there for five.”

“It was one of the most productive weeks of my life,” Edkins added. “METZ has played with Albini’s band, Shellac, a few times, so he was familiar with our music and he knew we were familiar with his.”

Strange Peace features 11 of 14 studio recordings, which could point to more material from these sessions being released in the future.

METZ seem to be part of a new noise-rock convention with a noticeably unrestrained and reckless inclination to the music. This is mainly echoed in the inordinately anarchic ethos that pervades the music. Despite the creatively rendered ideas, the waves of noise that permeate the band’s general sound are perhaps too chaotic and inaccessible at times.

Nonetheless, Edkins was especially pleased by the well-organized, relatively smooth structure of the recording process. You wouldn’t expect this, given the unhinged nature of METZ’s music. This condensed time frame no doubt pushed the band to its limit. No wonder the album was jammed out in one sitting. It’s clear the band pulled heavy influence from tumultuous personal events that overwhelmed its members.

“I was going through a lot of personal changes. I was in a state of shock while writing the lyrics in the midst of Trump’s presidency,” Edkins said. “I also had my first son. So, there were obviously a lot of crazy things going on. The title, Strange Peace, is relating to that calm before the storm—before something bad happens.”

Graphic by Zeze Le Lin

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Quickspins

Brand New – Science Fiction

Brand New – Science Fiction (Procrastinate! Music Traitors, 2017)

After eight years, pop-punk band Brand New released a great album, Science Fiction. This album is beautiful, dark and explores the tolls of mental health issues in exhaustive detail. Every song on the album has a different sound—some have guitar sounds influenced by southern rock, as well as the band’s classic emo stylings. Jesse Lacey’s deep vocals sound fraught with intense emotion, especially on the songs “Waste” and “Desert.” The lyrics paint a powerful and descriptive picture of personal mental health issues. This line from “Same Logic/Teeth” stuck with me: “Every new layer you uncover reveals something else you hate / And then you cracked your head, and broke some bones / And when you glued them back together you found out you did it wrong.” Although, some songs sounded dull, like “Could Never Be Heaven,” Brand New nonetheless came out with an emotionally potent album that has the potential to resonate with anyone.

Trial Track: “Waste”

Score: 8.5

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Music

The Great Novel’s road to rock

Montreal folk-rock band explores American literature through their lyrics

“You’ve got to shed your skin on the road of existence,” is The Great Novel’s mantra of their new album, Skins. The Montreal folk-rock band released the record on March 3 at La Sala Rossa. The lineup consists of Endrick Tremblay on lead vocals, guitar and harmonica, Marc Olivier Tremblay Drapeau on double bass and vocals, and Gabrièle Côté on vocals and percussion. The album explores new tones and narrative styles in the songs, breaking free from country/folk tracks and entering the realm of rock and roll. Skins has a vintage Americana feel to it—it’s the ideal soundtrack for an escapade to California’s Big Sur.

It’s been four years since the band’s inception, and The Great Novel is continuously jamming, performing and touring together. Originally, Tremblay began this band with a solo project in mind. “At first I wanted to write songs on my own,” he said. “The idea was to have a backup band, then it became a collaborative project where everyone gives their ideas.I’ve been a musician for a long time, mostly doing covers, bluesy stuff. At that time, I was obsessed with Robert Plant’s album, Raising Sand. It’s a folk album that has a rock vibe—I love how that sounds together,” Tremblay said.

Then Tremblay met Côté. “She had a good voice, so we tried to make some songs together,” he said. Drapeau eventually joined the picture alongside their former drummer, Tristan Forget. According to Tremblay, initially, there were no drums and their music was much more smooth. “We then decided to add drums. Turned out the drummer was so good that we asked him to join the band,” he said.The band then started to write more music together. “I chose these members because I was looking for that type of instrumentation,” Tremblay said. The band then traded their upright bass and acoustic guitar for the electric bass. “That’s when we became more rock. Our tones are much more classic rock than in our first album,” Tremblay said.

According to Tremblay, their lyrics are influenced by legendary authors in American literature, such as Mark Twain, Charles Bukowski, Jack Kerouac and J.D Salinger. “I was at a point of my life where I discovered a passion for books, especially American literature,” he said. As a French-Canadian, he said he didn’t get a chance to read the classics, such as How to Kill a Mockingbird, in elementary or high school. He read them later on in life and was fascinated. “These books have a particular quality about them. Since they are American, the writing has a street style. It has more action and rhythm,” Tremblay said. With his passion for American books and the band searching for an original name, the expression “The great American novel” came to mind. “So why not call us The Great Novel,” said Tremblay.

However, The Great Novel has also been inspired by a Canadian book, The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz by Mordecai Richler. It takes place in Montreal in the 1930s.“It’s about a Jewish man who wanted to get rich and would do anything for it,” Tremblay said. “I live a bohemian lifestyle and my life goals aren’t money-oriented. I thought it would be interesting to write in the skin of a character who has different values than myself.” Overall, Skins explores a variety of characters through storytelling. Its lyrics touch subjects of youth, eroticism, hard work and poverty.

Their new record took the band over a year to prepare. “We just wanted to do something unique, to experiment with sound texture and tonality,” Tremblay said. The album was recorded in just 10 days. “Those days were intense emotionally. It was 10 days of us just being together. It was a moment in time that we will never forget,” Tremblay said.

The Great Novel’s music video for their single “Get Me Some Land” explores retro-American cinematography. It feels as if you are watching a short thriller film, and the song just blends in seamlessly with the narrative. “As I described our lyrics to Pablo, our video producer, our song made him think of the American film Barfly, written by Charles Bukowski,” Tremblay said.The main actors of the music video are The Great Novel band members themselves. “I wanted to have that experience of being an actor for fun,” Tremblay said. “It turned out to be an intense and hard experience. They had to change my style. They gave me a moustache.” In the video, Côté plays the bartender and Drapeau plays the man who beats up Tremblay. “My brother played the motorcycle club guy, someone from our hometown passed us his truck—we had a small budget and had to do the whole thing in two nights,” Tremblay said.

The band has been on the road recently touring across Ontario and through the Maritimes. “People love to enjoy and party to our music, especially in the countryside. We were once booked for a one-hour show and ended up playing for four hours,” Tremblay said. The band is curious to see how people will react to their new rock album. They are headed to France in the spring for a European tour.

According to Tremblay, The Great Novel is a band that has family spirit. “We have been through so many things together, personal issues, so many hours on the road, but we are always there for each other. They are going to be part of my life for as long as I live,” Tremblay said.

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Music Quickspins

Psychocide – Alcohol + Bad Decisions

Psychocide – Alcohol + Bad Decisions (Psychocide, 2017)

Psychocide is the rock and roll band that will take you back to the early days of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Incubus. Their rock-on attitude in Alcohol + Bad Decisions will leave you wanting to jam out all night. “Crazy Janet” opens the album with high-energy guitar riffs reminiscent of old-school rock. Their tracks will remind you of songs from RHCP’s earlier albums, such as, Blood Sugar Sex Magik. In “Mary,” you’ll hear a classic high-energy rock tune with electrifying guitar solos. This track is sure to make you nostalgic as you think about your favorite 80s and 90s rock bands. Originally from NYC, Psychocide has now made Montreal their home. We can hear Montreal’s influence in their track “Mr. Suit,” with its mixture of French and English lyrics: “C’est quoi ça, chocolat!” Overall, the album captures the essence of classic rock—an excellent decision for a party playlist.

Trial Track: “Mary”

7.5/10

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Music Quickspins

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Flying Microtonal Banana

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Flying Microtonal Banana  (Flightless/ATO, 2017)

Australian psych-rock band King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard brings forth an unusual psychedelic 60s rock inspired album. This record will take you on a hypnotizing trip to a place where world music fuses with psychedelic sounds. If you play this record at a social gathering, people will instantly ask where this music comes from. Their track “Billabong Valley” features the sitar guitar, a traditional musical instrument from India. The song blends psychedelic rock with traditional Indian music rather smoothly. “Open Water” also features the sitar guitar, but it’s complemented by 60s garage guitar riffs. Their track “Anoxia” also combines rock and world music that can put the best of us in a haze. In “Doom City,” you’ll hear a heavy bassline and various electronic and guitar sounds. It’s a confusing ballad that sounds bizarre and yet astonishing. Flying Microtonal Banana is a world of its own for us to discover.

Trial Track: “Billabong Valley”

6.5/10

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Music Quickspins

You Me At Six – Night People

You Me At Six – Night People (Infectious People, 2017)

If you’ve missed the classic, sweet sound of pop-rock, Night People has got you covered. The album opens up with “Night People,” a track that will get that adrenaline pumping with its high energy. It has a feel-good, edgy but sweet sound and raspy vocals. You can tell this track would be killer to watch live. The party keeps on rolling with “Plus One,” where the high-energy guitar riffs and loud singing continues. The first few songs on the album are reminiscent of past hits from The Killers. In “Heavy Soul” and “Brand New,”  the tempo lowers down to a soft, rockish interlude that could easily be played on any afternoon. It has a nostalgic feel of 90s pop rock. It’s easy to listen to and just as easy to enjoy. When “Swear” hits the speakers, they bring back high-energy and intensity on guitars. The last few songs feature cool guitar riffs and rhythms that are instantly appealing and memorable.

7.5/10

Trial Track: “Night People”

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Music

Rock band Rust Eden’s journey to success

Alexandre and David’s love of music has turned Rust Eden into a five-piece rock band

At the heart of the Montreal rock band Rust Eden are two long-time friends who have a deep and profound love for music. They are vocalist, guitarist and keyboardist Alexandre Larin and bassist David Bastien. These musicians met each other in Saint-Eustache a decade ago, where both of them grew up. Their shared passion and drive made it natural for them to combine their music and start jamming together right away. They started off with the band name Gregon Ciel, which involved a progressive music style. “We made a lot of music before. Did some recording, just the two of us at my parent’s house,” said Larin.

However, by only making music alone in Larin’s basement, they began building a bubble around themselves. It got to the point that they were shy to go out and share their music with the world. Although they have built up their confidence over the years, the shyness still exists for both musicians. “It’s still a big deal,” said Larin. “It’s better than it was, but there’s mood swings in the process. There’s a lot of, ‘Oh is it okay? Do I suck?'”

They believe that this lack of confidence comes from putting a lot of pressure on themselves, but they say it can be a positive thing as well. “I think it’s a good thing because we are [creating] so much music. We are doing two or three songs a week,” said Larin. The band said focusing more on the creative process and less on gaining popularity through their music helps them build their confidence as well. It was around this time four years ago that they decided to create the band Rust Eden. They then grew their musical duo into a five-piece band, with Marc-Antoine Sévégny on drums, Étienne Broué on guitar and Benoît Parent on keyboards.

Larin and Bastien performing at the M bar on St-André in 2015. Photo by Camille St-Jacques.

They wanted to add more musicians to their band in order to bring a new dimension to the sound of their live performances. “I think that playing with other musicians is pretty cool because you’re playing with different mindsets,” said Larin. “I think it’s really positive to hear other musician’s ideas.” The band released their latest album, Apartment Green, in May, and will be releasing an EP in the upcoming year. Apartment Green was recorded in Parent’s studio, Studio B. “It was a no-brainer to record there because it’s a good studio with expensive stuff,” said Larin.

Studio B’s label, Chivy Chivy, has also given them a lot of funding for their music. “They paid for radio tracking in the States and Canada, and they helped us with money and with promotions,” said Larin. According to Bastien and Larin, as reserved people, it is hard to make contacts, so they are thankful to have Chivy Chivy as a record label. “We took a huge step with them just to promote our band. We have no contacts in Montreal, so they just know how to do it,” said Bastien. “We tried, but we’re not good at it.”

Although they are both very happy with how the album turned out, they’re ready to move on with their new music. “We’re the kind of guys who just… We’re doing music and once it’s released, we say to ourselves: ‘Okay, what’s the next thing?… What’s the next step? How can we make something different?’” said Larin.Bastien and Larin have always been focused on creating unique music they’re proud of—something that will never change throughout their musical careers. “We just wanted to make music from scratch,” said Larin. “We don’t want to sound like anything else. The final goal is to [compose] original music.”

Rust Eden jamming at Studio B in 2015. Photo by Camille St-Jacques.

The band is now experimenting with sound and adding more glam rock influences to their upcoming EP. “It will have the groovy kind of stuff, because we’ve always been more down-tempo, kind of stoner type of music, but we’re trying to do more up-tempo and upper music,” said Larin. Both Larin and Bastien’s mindsets and points of view will be equally featured in the upcoming EP. “In terms of lyrics, for the next album it’s pretty 50/50,” said Larin.

They are simply happy to be playing together and compose my original music that they are proud of. “That’s the best high we can get. It’s just so much fun,” said Larin. The most important thing for these two friends is to be true to themselves and to their music. “We just try to keep the roots of two guys who are doing music and tripping and… trying to explore things and just satisfy ourselves in that kind of trip. It’s really a trip for us,” said Larin.

Rust Eden will be performing at Casa Del Popolo on Nov. 17th. The show starts at 9 p.m. and tickets are $7 at the door.

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Music Quickspins

The Growlers – City Club

The Growlers – City Club (Cult Records, 2016)

The Growlers have typically been a time machine back to the heyday of 60s and 70s psychedelic rock. That is until City Club, which was not at all what I expected to hear. I anticipated they would continue to pursue the unique psychedelic sounds and lyrics featured in their previous album,  Chinese Fountain (2014). Instead, City Club has a distinct retro, rock vibe— which makes The Growlers sound like many other bands out there right now. The change left me disappointed— City Club sounds like an album from another band entirely. Some of the songs are a good listen, but fans of Chinese Fountain will definitely notice a big change. City Club is missing the edginess and uniqueness the band is known for. If you’re new to The Growlers, however, you’ll probably appreciate this new album more than I did.

Trial Track: “City Club”

5/10

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Music

Motherhood saves the best for last

The New Brunswick band ends their Canadian tour at POP Montreal

Motherhood: a soft, nurturing and beautiful word. It is also the name of a gritty, dark, industrial rock band. From New Brunswick, Motherhood has been touring across Canada since the end of August to promote their most recent album Baby Teeth, which was released this past summer. They performed in Montreal on Sept. 23 for POP Montreal’s music festival.

Brydon Crain, is the lead singer, guitarist and vox player; Adam Sipkema sings backup vocals, plays the percussions and vox; Penelope Stevens sings, plays the bass, organ, synthesizer and vox. The bandmates go way back. Crain and Sipkema went to high school together, then moved to Fredericton where they met Stevens. The band formed in 2010.“Fredericton influenced us in a major way lyrically. We write as if no one pays attention to it. There are no expectations of what a band should sound like from Fredericton,” said Crain. The lack of expectations has led them to bend the rules and become a more experimental band.“We’re more about the concept behind the music and not the genre. We mess around with ideas. If they sound cool, we use it,” said Crain. Motherhood is a mixture of punk, blues and country sounds. They are also influenced by bands from various genres. “We all like Dear Rouge, Captain Beefheart and Death Grips,” said Crain.

Their recent album, Baby Teeth, expresses their anger and emotions towards various issues. Their song “Greed” is about the negative impacts of consumerism. Even though a lot of the lyrical content isn’t very happy, Crain’s goal is for people to think their music is interesting.“The lyrics are stories from the different universe that I write in. For this album, we practiced twice a week and came up with ideas. We basically banged our heads against the wall until we found something we all liked,” said Crain.Overall, Baby Teeth is about being from New Brunswick. “It’s a mix about being happy about New Brunswick but also being frustrated because there’s a lot of shitty stuff going on there which is affecting being there right now,” said Crain.

Live from O Patro Vys, Motherhood was rocking it on stage. Photo by Ana Hernandez

Everyone contributes the same amount of work to the band’s creative process. This is something that Crain said he loves most about Motherhood. “Both my bandmates have musical brains,” he said. “They are always ready to hear my floppy ideas. Adam plays drums unlike any other. Penny is good with harmonies and has more of a technical background, which is very helpful to the songwriting process.”

Motherhood has performed in Montreal a few times before with local band Smokes. They also brought a music festival from Fredericton to Montreal called the Shifty Bits Cult. They called the Montreal version of the festival the Shifty Bits Circus.“We chose Montreal because of the city’s hard-working people in the music scene. It was a good mix of New Brunswick and Montreal bands,” said Crain.

The band’s performance at POP Montreal took place at O Patro Vys bar. Catriona Sturton, an indie-rock and blues singer-songwriter from Ottawa, opened for Motherhood. Her deep bluesy voice, along with her harmonica playing, gave the performance a folk-rockish feel. She also mixed in her sense of humour, throwing in jokes between her songs that got the whole audience chuckling. Her charisma on stage was undeniable. When Motherhood took center stage, Sturton joined in for their two first songs and rocked it.

Penelope Stevens of Motherhood on bass guitar live at POP Montreal’s music festival. Photo by Ana Hernandez

Motherhood’s music sounds all the better live. Their rough guitar riffs, industrial sounds and screeching voices are greatly intensified when they hit the stage. Their song “Twosies” is meant to be heard at maximum volume. The trio gave it their all on POP Montreal’s stage.“I love to perform live. It’s a chance to act crazy, scream, do things that I’m not aloud to do in normal life. When the show is good, I’ll come off stage not remembering what happened. I’d just be like, wow, that was so much fun,” said Crain. The band has been touring with Little You, Little Me, who also played later that night. “Little You, Little Me are more rock and roll, and heavier than us. Their influences come from a lot of different places in rock,” said Crain.

Motherhood had a piece of advice for any musicians planning on touring across Canada: “Bring a good book—Canada is huge.”   

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Music Quickspins

Cass McCombs – Mangy Love

Cass McCombs – Mangy Love ( Anti-, 2016)

Mangy Love incorporates lyrics charged with strong political and social messages as well as a ‘60s rock sound. His song “Laughter Is the Best Medicine” is a slow, soulful tune with soft guitar excerpts. His tunes have a serious undertone that suits their slow melodies. In “Cry,” however, he picks up the beat, but features a deep lyrical prose. It’s the song to listen when you’re in a deeply pensive mood. “Run Sister Run” has a groovy melody. While the instrumental might be playful, his lyrics discuss issues surrounding social injustice towards women. It’s a beautiful piece with raw, relevant meaning—it’s not just a song, but a story to be heard. The album combines beautiful instrumentals with powerful lyrical meaning. To enjoy this album to the fullest one must carefully listen to its lyrics.

Trial track: “Run Sister Run”

9/10

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Music

Conquer Divide kicks major ass

The all-female metal rock band conquers the divide between genders

Conquer Divide, an all-female metal rock band, is conquering rock radio stations across America. It’s only been a year since their first self-titled album was released and they have already landed number 13 on Billboard’s HeatSeeker charts and number 33 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock/Radio Charts.

The band consists of screamer and vocalist Janel Duarte, guitarist Kristen Waters, drummer Tamara Tadic, lead vocalist Kiarely Castillo, bassist Ashley Colby and guitarist Izzy Johnson. For Duarte, hearing her band’s name on the radio is surreal. “We’re getting up there and it’s a lot to do with our fans,” she said. “They are calling the radio stations requesting us. It’s such a lovely feeling.” Conquer Divide’s music is a mixture of metal rock and softer rock tunes. Duarte said the bands “Beartooth” and “Attack Attack!” were some of the band’s major musical influences.

The band wouldn’t have been formed if it weren’t for international networking across a multitude of social media platforms.“It originally started with Kristen [Waters] when she was 15. She had the vision of starting a female project. She wanted to prove that it’s possible,” said Duarte. “She looked for girls in the Michigan area, which is where she’s from, but had to broaden her search.” The search for Kristen’s band mates expanded throughout the U.S., Canada and into the UK.  Duarte mentions how band members Kiarely, Izzy and herself were discovered through YouTube. “They found me through my song covers that I had posted on my YouTube Channel,” Duarte said. “We all come from different states and Izzy is from the UK. Conquer Divide started with a lot of Facebook and YouTube so we have a lot of love for social media.”

The name ‘Conquer Divide’ has a strong meaning, one that Duarte explained is different for each member. “I see Conquer Divide as conquering the division of how far apart we are, we all live in different parts of the world and we come and make beautiful music together,” she explained. “It also means conquering the division of genders. Essentially, how conquering the fact that we are girls and still kick ass.”

What she loves most about being in the band is when they all get to [jam] together and go to different cities that they’ve never been to. “It’s always a good time when we are out travelling and then the shows are just the highlight of the night,” Duarte said. She added that touring isn’t dreadful: “When we got stuck by the side of the road at the end of our ‘Slave’ tour, we were all giggling. We were in the middle of the desert.” The girls are very close-knit and they conquer all their band issues together. “We’re a really strong band,” she said. Duarte said that the whole experience is worth the sleepless and showerless nights.

Conquer Divide wants listeners to feel comforted through their music. They write their songs based on experiences that everyone goes through. “Everyone goes through a lot of stuff in life, so I have a few things that I want to get off my chest and that’s where my inspiration comes from,” said Duarte.

Janel Duarte, vocalist/screamer performing live. Photo by Lauren Klinge.

What she loves most about what she brings to the band is her sense of humour. “I make a lot of people laugh, I’m just a ball of energy,” she said. “I feel like I help bring the shows together with the hype, craziness and aggression.”

She has a lot to say about her beloved bandmates as well. “Next to me, [Izzy] has a lot of patience, she knows how to get things done—best sense of humour mixed with a pretty personality and sassy accent.” As for their drummer Tamara, Duarte said she’s on fire behind the drums. “She’s a quiet sweet girl and when you see her on drums, it’s like, what? She’s so down to earth. We are all two different people on and off stage but for her it’s definitely apparent.”

The “momma” of Conquer Divide is guitarist Kristen. “She knows our schedules, when we need to do interviews. Any questions we have, we ask her,” Duarte said, adding that Kristen is the blunt and honest friend of the group. “She’s the friend that will tell you you look fat in those jeans.”

Their bass player Ashley is a tall southern gal who loves country music. “Her personality is so bubbly and happy. She’s always the person trying to keep us positive. It’s really awesome to have her around,” Duarte said. Vocalist Kiarely is Duarte’s best friend, inside and outside of the band. “We can just sit in a room and laugh our asses off for hours. We are inseparable on tour,” said Duarte. “I love all my girls in my band.”

To all bands out there working hard on their music, this is Duarte’s advice: “Get on YouTube, Facebook, post comments, go crazy, network as much as you possibly can, because when you do have a project that’s about to blow their minds, you will have a great audience.”

The girls are currently saving up for a new van for future tours. As soon as they hit the road again they are looking forward to touring and performing in Canada.

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Music

No more acrobatics for The Frisky Kids

Photo by Brandon Johnston.

Searching for the true meaning of rock ‘n’ roll, this local band found love and rebellion

The Frisky Kids were born rebelling. On the far West side of Montreal, in a Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue basement, Calum Dowbiggin Glew and Matisse Gill were busy paying off noise complaint tickets—the result of plugging in to write their cool cocktail of catchy tunes. They drew from the clean pop sound of ‘60s Beatles and Kinks, but their sound also reflects the dirtier energy of garage rockers like Ty Segall, Tame Impala, and The Strokes. Appropriately, their songs are quite frisky.

Neighbours might not have appreciated the lively tunes rattling the homes of the above dwellers, but The Frisky Kids have garnered much attention lately and landed the seventh spot on the CBC Rock Your Campus competition.They ascended the ranks with their bubbly songs, but may have gotten extra attention because bassist “[Gill] is a sex symbol in New Zealand. He’s on every magazine,” Glew joked.

Staying true to the nature of rock n’ roll, the trio isn’t as clean cut as they appear on stage; with dress shirts and the occasional tie.

“In one of our videos, me and [Gill] and our old drummer [are] showering together. We got a lot of negative reaction to that,” said Glew. “Whenever people tell us to do something, we’re kind of like kids, and we don’t do it or we do it the opposite way. It’s kind of childish—it’s to piss them off. I don’t know why that would make anybody strictly uncomfortable—and Matisse, he’s definitely arm candy, so we’ve gotta advertise what we got. Like The Black Lips, you know, how they kiss on stage.”

“It’s an essential part of rock ‘n’ roll. People forget that—it’s not about controversy anymore,” he continued. “It’s all about going on and doing a good set [now]. Rock and roll … it’s supposed to be a bit rebellious … If you can’t even have a shower scene together, [that] feels really bizarre.”

In addition to an intimate brotherly love for each other (as well as promoting water conservation), Glew and Gill, and new drummer Alex Paul, were attracted to the feeling of camaraderie and love bubbling from the music scene—especially at the shows of Mac DeMarco, Ty Segall, The Black Lips, and King Khan.

Photo by Brandon Johnston.

“We were going to a lot of these garage rock shows where people were just going nuts, like, dancing but not really moshing, because it’s not absolutely violent,” Glew said. “Kind of just dancing really close together—getting up on stage, jumping off stage, getting back on stage—it felt like that’s what rock ‘n’ roll used to be, and now it’s just not. So we really wanted to go in that vein of thinking: really fun live shows.”

The frontmen bound around during their show and try to cook up a feeling full of zest and love. Tightly packed in a happy bouncing crowd at a concert, Glew feels closer to what rock was meant to be—rebellious. The band sometimes rocks too hard, though:

“One night we were going to our hometown of Hudson to play this music festival. We kind of got drunk the night before [the show] and we were climbing our old primary school. We did a jump—it was a little reckless because our drummer broke his leg that night. The day after, we had to play, and it was just me and [Gill]. It was a pretty crazy night!”

 Glew has given-up on pursuing acrobatic endeavors since then, but when it comes to pursuing girls and playing the field, the band admits that they fall short. The Frisky Kids, Glew explained, aren’t very frisky at all.

“It’s kind of an ironic name, too, because we’re not frisky. When we thought of ‘frisky’, it meant ‘really forthcoming with girls’, which our circle [of friends] knows we’re not like that. It was a kind of joke,” Glew said.

Glew and Gill felt at odds with the club scene that swept-up their friends throughout teenagehood. The top 40 songs with their repetitive rhythms didn’t do it for these musicians.Their song, “All the Girls,” isn’t about scoring big under the revolving disco ball, it’s “actually about the guys who do get all the girls, and all the girls who go to all the guys—that’s not us. It’s kind of a disassociation with the club scene,” Glew said.

Luckily the band chose the name that they did. They had started off by calling themselves ‘The Herpes’: “we were like ‘well, this is just stupid and it’s going to creep people out,’” the guitarist said. Who knows, maybe if they’d stuck with ‘The Herpes’ they would have scared away those people making noise complaints.

On a final note, Glew adds: “Vote Liberal. Eat local. And god bless the Queen.”

The Frisky Kids play Divan Orange Dec. 4 with The Beaches. For more information on The Frisky Kids, check out Facebook.com/TheFriskyKids

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